Microsoft has had a somewhat difficult time in recent years consolidating the success of the Xbox platform. As older Xbox IPs wane in popularity and the company begins looking towards its future, many considered the recent Xbox Games Showcase as a relative make-or-break moment.
The Xbox Games Showcase covered a huge breadth of upcoming content for Microsoft, from brand-new projects to pre-existing ones of huge interest. Now that the dust has settled, it seems that the Xbox Games Showcase was exactly what Microsoft needed to establish its presence in the near future of the gaming industry.
Microsoft's Recent Issues with Xbox Games
As Microsoft obtains more gaming studios, it becomes clear that it is no longer reliant on its older IPs such as Halo. 2021's Halo Infinite had a lot riding on it, for example, yet the game's alleged bare-bones multiplayer at launch was enough to turn a lot of fans away from the release.
Microsoft is currently embroiled in a huge battle over its record-breaking purchase of Activision Blizzard, with this approach to acquiring developers being considered controversial to some. The recent acquisitions made by Microsoft have led to huge expectations surrounding its next projects, hence the importance of the recent Xbox Games Showcase.
The showcase came shortly after Microsoft took a lot of heat regarding its recent large releases. For example, the recently released Redfall came under a lot of fire for the state of its release. Coming from the Microsoft-owned Arkane Studios and coming as a day one Game Pass release, Redfall was a serious blow to Microsoft's reputation. With direct competitors such as Sony enjoying critically successful exclusive releases, it was clear how important the recent Xbox Games Showcase truly was.
The Success of the Xbox Games Showcase Was Much-Needed
The Xbox Games Showcase on June 11 ultimately did not disappoint, painting a confident and clear picture of Microsoft's future gaming plans. Xbox announced a spate of upcoming projects such as Clockwork Revolution and Fable, both of which are set to be Xbox exclusives.
The showcase crucially did not forget about many pre-existing projects, also announcing a large-scale Monkey Island expansion for Sea of Thieves. As well as this, the showcase gave insight into some hotly anticipated upcoming Xbox titles, such as Avowed. The ambitious RPG got a lot of love during the event, and fans can now pleasantly await its newly announced 2024 release window.
Of course, the Xbox Games Showcase was also coupled alongside its own dedicated Starfield Direct. This was perhaps the crown jewel of the entire event, giving fans extensive insight into what is such a massively popular project. The Direct showed fans what can be expected of Starfield's customization, core gameplay, skill system, and much more. Knowledge of Starfield was fairly limited prior to the Xbox Games Showcase, with Microsoft smartly leveraging this fact to great effect.
It is true that recent Xbox titles such as the aforementioned Redfall were absent from the showcase, but this may have been necessary. While fans still deserve to know future plans for such titles, the showcase used its time smartly to cover a massive range of different projects that will hopefully rectify the pitfalls of games like Redfall. Every Xbox fan now likely hopes that Starfield can be the first-party title to raise Xbox out of its recent slump, and the showcase determined that it won't be alone in this effort.
Given the loud criticism that Microsoft has faced in recent years over its exclusives and plans for the future, it is clear that the showcase did what it needed to do. With a clear roadmap for numerous high-profile exclusives lining the way forward, the Xbox Games Showcase was a win that Microsoft desperately needed.